Ed Cole interview (part 1)

In my self imposed isolation (something I am content with), I find that I have good friends all over this (great?) nation of ours. I haven't seen any of my old friends in almost ten years, some much longer than that, so I do daydream at times about what it would be like to have some of them as close neighbors. Ed Cole, musician, band mate and longtime friend, would be one of those ones that would nice to have living down the road. We could visit and discuss family life, talk shit about the status quo, ponder over music past and present, and I would be able to see him do his art live. He is the second guitarist that I have played with, that I have also asked to do an interview (I now have plans to interview the third). Ed is one of the finest human beings I know (I wish the world was filled with more Eds) and just an amazing musician. My burnt out brain has left me with just scattered memories, but what I do remember is that we had a blast creating together. Here's Ed... Damn Ed, I was thinking about it and we’ve known each other a long time. We haven’t hung out in forever, your Son Cosmo was newborn last time I saw you, but through the web we’ve managed to stay in touch. I think our meeting had something to do with KHSU and you being a DJ (Dead Ed) up there, but do you remember the circumstances of how we met and what was going on with you at that time?

A: I first remember seeing you onstage with WD40 at Tsunami's opening for MDC in 1990. I first met you at KHSU in the engineer booth, I think Cathy M introduced us. I remember your fish tattoo looking very fresh.

Husband, Father of some youngens, long time organic produce warehouseman (what’s your official title?) and musician, where do you find time for it all?

A: My official title is Purchasing Inventory Maintenance and I review quality and "select lots" for specific customers at Organically Grown Company in Portland. It's actually a really fun job. I don't find time for it all, I feel like I barely get anything done except for work, sleep, raise kids, eat food, spend time with my wife Tina and then sometimes if I'm motivated I go downstairs into the basement studio and work on recording my music. I wish there were more hours in the day.

You are a fellow music lover and you’ve never let genre hold you back, I'm curious about what was your earliest exposure to music and how did that affect you?

A: My earliest music memories are the Beatles, they were huge with my older brothers. "Yellow Submarine" was my first favorite song, followed by "Rhinestone Cowboy" by Glenn Campbell and "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" by John Denver. When I had the opportunity, I would play those 8 tracks over and over again. I really liked FM radio hits when I was 8,9,10, I loved whatever shitty classic rock was big at the time. I first wanted to be in a band after being exposed to AC/DC, Van Halen and Ozzy. I picked up guitar at age 13 when I traded a BMX bike for a shitty electric guitar that I plugged into my stereo. That was 1984.

Are there genres that you find distasteful or others that maybe you’ve grown to appreciate?

A: I savor the moment anytime music disturbs me enough to almost offend me. I was recently exposed to large doses of Ke$ha, Brittney Spears and Katy Perry; part of me wanted to barf but I still find some musical value in that very crass, commercial crap. Of the three, I like Katy Perry the best. I so far can't get into techno or club type music. I have lots of friends who are into it but it's for sure not for me. Modern country is pretty revolting, it's pretty much the worst. I'm pretty sick of 1980s music about now, I heard enough Duran Duran the first time around, it makes me puke when I hear it at a restaurant now. Bleccchhhh!!

Garden Weasel - Look and Judge Tulip - Wipe It Up At what point did you make the transition from listener of music to wanting to play an instrument? What was your first band experience like?

A: before I could really play guitar I had a crappy acoustic guitar that I would tune to an ugly chord and just make up "rock riffs". My friend Bear (Bar with an umlaut is how he spells it) had a home-made drum kit constructed of a plastic bucket, a tinker-toy can and the top head of a banjo, would would jam free of shame and then make overdubs of piano, clarinet and have the cello play a bassline, etc... We would just pile on tracks by holding one boombox near the other recorder and then playing along with our own tapes, eventually making a masterpiece mainly composed of tape hiss. A year or two later we had actual instruments and a 4 track, we spent many afternoons and evenings in his bedroom making up our own songs. Bar later went on to join the group Mr. Bungle. I learned everything I know about self-recorded songwriting from watching him work. Near the end of our collaborative high school years, Bar was playing every instrument and doing 4 part harmonies with the 4 track, really cool stuff.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoAqSd2_P6o]

Did you have anyone you looked up to, or who sort of showed you the ropes in life or music?

A: My brother Monty comes to mind immediately. He was always very musical, learning clarinet early on and expanding to many other instruments. I remember him banging away on piano when I was 5 or 6, really just thinking he was a god because he could play Scott Joplin ragtime piano as well as popular hits of the day like Styx or Supertramp. He also played guitar and taught me my first chords. He is a monster musician who is a woodwinds professor and lives and teaches in Macon, Georgia. My older brothers Mike and Darrow and my sister Neva all went to pains to expose me to what they felt was cool music, I think they all gave me the impression early on that music is very important.

First memorable show you went to see? Or feel free to list several.

A: A third-tier heavy metal band called Rail played in my town (Crescent City) in 1984. They sounded like most every other heavy metal band ever from the 1980s but it was cool to see a loud show . Van Halen 5150 was my first arena show in 1985, not very memorable but it was ok. The first show that really blew my mind was Meat Puppets with Mr. Bungle at HSU, this was probably 1988. They were the first underground band I really connected with because I sensed a similar kind of nerdy, classic-rock-hard-rock fandom with the Meat Puppets, and they were fucking weirdos, really did their own thing at the time, so I was happy to have a band that seemed like "mine."

How about that first time you hit the stage yourself in front of an audience, what was that like?

A: After playing for 4 or 5 weeks I got up onstage with my brother's (former) band Puffin, an R&B blues band and I played "Peter Gunne" out-of-tune but with sunglasses and feathered hair. I had a solo all worked out and still probably have a recording of it somewhere. Next was the Catholic school talent show at the Octoberfest in 1984. Bar and Ed did a kind of medley of Kinks and Quiet Riot songs that we knew. I played as often as possible during the first few years of high school with different bands at assemblies school events and what not. I was pretty comfortable on stage from the beginning, I always liked it.

You’re like me, been collecting music for a long time, can you list some of your favorite bands, or maybe the influential ones, and what makes those bands so special to you?

A: Wow. I have so much music on my mind all the time. Where to even start? Lou Reed was huge to me because I also sing in a low register and he has probably above all others been my guiding artistic muse. Bob Mould, Paul Westerberg, David Bowie aer all top favorites for general listening. My late-night listening includes lots of mellow music like Devendra Banhart (only his early stuff), Cocteau Twins, Nick Drake, Robyn Hitchcock and Swans. I listen to lots of jazz, mostly at work. For Punk-era stuff, my initial favorites were Minor Threat, Black Flag, Agent Orange, Social Distortion, Fear, Devo - I still rock my exact same mix tape of all that shit in the car. Black Sabbath I've listened to so much that I almost can't listen to it anymore but I think all that music is in my DNA. Rolling Stones, Hendrix, Stooges, the Who, the Doors - I guess I've gone classic rock, I'll listen to any of that still. And Helios Creed and Chrome and Killdozer. And Thin LIzzy. I pretty much eat, breathe and shit music, I'm always curious if there is stuff I haven't heard yet.

You’ve been in a hell of a lot of bands, can you possible name them all? Or how about just the memorable ones?  We talked the other day about all the bands you play in, two, and your solo project. Give me your take on those bands and what’s the deal with your solo project?

A: Sure I'll try:

1. Bar and Ed/No Nik Muk No Tin Lik 1985-1990 2. Garden Weasel 1990-1992 3. Tulip 1994-1995 4. Billy Jack 1995-1996 5. the Naysayers 1996-2002 6. Velocirapture 2000 1999-2000 7. Activator 2001-2004 8. Ed Cole and the College Girls of Tora Bora 2002-2005 http://tinyurl.com/o9hslj6 9. White Hot Odyssey 2004-2005 http://tinyurl.com/pmxwtjt 10. The Underlings 2006-present 11. Thundering Asteroids 2014

The deal with my upcoming solo album is: I have 10 new songs that are all-acoustic. I'm very nearly done with the music-making part of it. There are about 6 different people on it, lots of odd (for me) instruments like banjo and cello and jaw harp. I plan to have it released by the end of summer.  (See the song/vid at the end of this interview... Ever since I went to visit you that one time, I’ve loved Eugene and thought it would be a great place to live (like Frisco it’s got a shit ton of cafes). After being a long time Eugene Oregon resident, you made the big move to Portland, what the hell man? What’s so special about Portland? Are the scenes different?

A: Eugene is the ultimate hippy town, which is both good and bad. Lots of good, healthy food and good coffee, etc... The music scene in Eugene is actually pretty good for a small town and all the players are fairly close-knit. There is a great pub called Sam Bond's that everybody knows about and at least 7 or so other places to play music at around town. The WOW hall is one of my favorite venues. I've seen Nomeansno there perhaps 12 times? It's THE place for all ages punk shows for touring bands. Too much reggae and hippy jam music in Eugene but it's a nice place that I'll always come back too. There are some younger people with good taste who are hosting interesting bands, there's a lot going on for such a small city.

Do you have any records/CDs for sale and where can a guy get those? A: You can download my home recordings at my Bandcamp page. The Underlings have 2 CDs you can get through CD Baby and we have a 7" . You can order those by emailing us on Facebook.

The Underlings - Part Time Crime [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/the-Underlings-Part-time-crime.mp3"][/audio] The Underlings - Foreign Sausage [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/14-The-Underlings-Foriegn-Sausage.mp3"][/audio] The Underlings - Vice Squad [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/the-underlings-01-vice-squad.mp3"][/audio] Ed Cole - Cross 2 Bear [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Ed-Cole-Cross-2-bear.mp3"][/audio] Ed Cole - Working Class Losers [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Ed-Cole-Working-class-losers.mp3"][/audio] Ed Cole - Underbelly Set [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Ed-Cole-Underbelly-Set.mp3"][/audio]

What new stuff spins on your turntable these days? A:Today it was John Fahey, Return of Blind Joe Death. Earlier it was Guided By Voices ??? I forget which album and then Brian Eno, Before and After Science. I listen on headphones to spotify at work, I often play Dead Boys, Warren Zevon, Amanda Palmer (barf! I can't believe I liked her, that was last year), Kurt Vile, Camper Van Beethoven, Pere Ubu, Judas Priest, I think I listened to all of that and more this week. I listened to Mylie Cyrus' "Bangers" this week also, it wasn't very good but I still like her.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3DMde9OewQ]

As I said earlier, you seem to always have a lot of coles (pun intended) in the fire, any future projects in the works?

A: I'm working on an album in my head right now, a rock album that is going to be like Lou Reed meets Tom Petty with Television as the backing band.

Any additional words of wisdom? Anything to the young musician? Or perhaps to the world and humanity in general?

A: Play because you want to, play because it feels good, make music freely and don't worry about the consequences. Don't get bogged down worrying about success, just keep making music because it's just the best thing that humanity has come up with so far. Music will heal you or at least make your transition to death much more pleasant.

Thanx bud! Ed is well represented on the net with a Bandcamp to get your listening on of his solo material, a Facebook where you can socialize and swap recipes, more listening at Reverbnation, you can get inside his head at Edhead 101, and you can take an epic journey in his Garden Weasel Diaries.

After a while here we'll have part 2 of the interview with a ton of killer tunes. For now, wanted to finish this off with what I consider to the culmination of years writing and performing music. This here vid, I need to give anonymous kudos to the videographer who did a stunning job, is the kind of stuff that should be popular on the radio right now and really is testimony to the sophistication of Mr. Cole as an artist and composer, enjoy...

[video width="640" height="480" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Ed-Cole-This-Way-.mp4"][/video]

Jeff "The Leftoverking" Langdon - interview

Jeff "The Leftoverking" Langdon (not to be confused with the Canadian figure skater, Jeffrey Langdon), band mate and long time friend, I've always called him "Jefe". He is well described by St. Francis of Assisi, “He who works with his hands is a laborer. He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman. He who works with his hands and his head and his heart is an artist.” For as long as I've known him he has been a laborer, craftsman, AND artist. House painter, guitar maker, silk screener, musician, painter, sculptor, photographer, blogger and probably one of the finest examples of a down to earth human being there ever could be.  Rhondapolooza had this to say, "One entirely crazy mofo who treads sure-footedly along his artistic path.  Often he zigs when I'm predicting he'll zag, and that's *exactly* what I love about his photography."  I'm thinking we met sometime in '87 or '88, my memory's hazy, but I know he was dating a wonderful woman, who to this day is his wife and mother of his children. She was a fellow student and dorm resident at Humboldt State University. Several years later, in the early 90's he was the guitar player (principle song writer) for a band I sung in, Grout (man that band was killer, so ahead of it's time and so much better when I left and Jeff took over vocal duties). The guy has been in a million bands (not just as guitar player and vocalist, more recently, drummer as well) and has a solo project that has been off and on again for some time now. A few of these bands I have shared here, The Hitch, The Fire Demons, Splinter Cell and the Leftoverking. Unlike most guys who have talent and creativity oozing out of their pores, you know, the self absorbed type, Jeff is the working man's artist, so down to earth he may be like Tolkien and somewhere in Middle Earth.  As our mutual friend Sang put it, "s truly polymathic."  I just have admired the guy for as long as I've known him, always been like "holy shit, you did that" and figured it was time to put him on the stand, or as I put it to him, "be like a seagull scavenging at a landfill."  Jeff's landfill is filled wit many treasures. Grout - Big Truck The Hitch - Tongue In Cheek Fire Demons - This Job Sucks Splinter Cell - EBT (Eureka Bicycle Tweakers) Ya know thinking about it Jeff, we’ve known each other for 25+ years, but for the life of me, this burnt out brain has done away with the memories of our meeting.  Do you remember the circumstances of how we met and what was going on with you at that time?

J: when I first moved to Humboldt, I had connected with my high school friends who were already living there.  My buddy Sebastian Elrite was lifting weights with a group of dudes from HSU for fun, and told me about some guys who would jam during the weightlifting sessions who needed a guitar player.  So i showed up to the Flesh House (your house) and started playing with Sean Phillips, jon ?, and cain (who had been the bass player from the lookouts).  We were pretty horrible from what i remember, and loud.  After each practice we would go upstairs from the basement garage, and you would be there sitting on the couch, watching mash with the tv cranked up to full volume so you could hear it.  That's how i remember meeting you.

EDIT:  Now that you mention it, you guys did a really loud, harsh cover of Nirvana's "Negative Creep". You are a man who wears many hats, with your hands in all kinds of different pots, how would you describe yourself?

J: Jack of all trades, master of none!  I guess mainly I consider myself and artist, whatever form that art takes is up to what excites me at the moment.  At home am known as mainly a fartist.

You are a fellow music lover and you’ve never let genre hold you back, I'm curious about what was your earliest exposure to music and how did it evolve?

J:  I grew up in a house full of four teenage girls in the mid sixties so some of the first music I heard was definitely the Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel, the monkeys, stones, and Cat Stevens.  Stuff like that.  My folks were older and listened to mainly show tunes.  My dad liked western music (Johnny cash, Marty Robbins, etc) but never listened to it much as my sisters and mom mainly ruled the radio and turntable.  I can relate to that now as I can't really enjoy my records in my house either.  My two little girls are not really into black flag, or the butthole surfers...  ha ha.  Full circle.

Is there any music you don’t like?

J:  Top forty of any form does not really float my boat, but I have always been pretty open to different listening experiences.  So I guess I don't really like top 40 pop, or country much.  I pretty much cringe when I hear that stuff.

I know you've probably seen your fair share of bands over the years, what was the first memorable show (or feel free to list several)?

Seeing the who and the clash at the Oakland Coliseum was a huge deal for me, but sitting so far away from the bands, there was a certain disconnection there.  I think seeing punk bands in small clubs up close and personal was pretty moving and influential to me.  Black flag, and Dead Kennedys were eye openers.  Or I should say ear openers.

Are there any particular bands that have had a lasting impact or have shaped you as a musician today and why would that be?

J: I have to say that I was majorly influenced by the Who as a youngster.  I remember seeing the footage of them smashing their instruments on the Smother's Brothers show.  I think that was the first time I ever saw anger and negative emotion expressed in music, and it was pretty liberating.  I think that influence had carried over into the punk movement, and drove a lot of people of my generation to create heavily driven music.

What made you pick up a guitar (or was that even the first instrument you played)?  Can you remember the first time you played in front of a live audience?

J:  My folks and sisters say that I grabbed an acoustic guitar of my dad's, and jumped up on the fireplace hearth and started rocking out when i was like three or four years old.  I think they were listening to Elvis at the time.  I took guitar lessons a few times as a kid, but it never really stuck.  My best friend from grade school and I took lessons from a nun.  When we were in junior high, we went to guitars unlimited in Menlo Park California and purchased used electric guitars together.  We ditched the nun, and found a guy named Rick Neil who would teach us rock and roll songs for a dollar a song.  Then we took off with it.  The most memorable time I can recall playing in front of an audience was in high school.  I played in a mod band called the Meek.   We got gigs at a bar in San Francisco called The Sound of Music on Turk Street.  It was quite a novelty to be underage, and get to play and be served in a bar.  That was a different time.  We played originals and covers of sixties R&B songs, and bands like the Jam, the Who, the Kinks, and Small Faces.  I remember playing The Sound of Music, and getting heckled quite a bit, but one night there we played the song Shout, and the crowd really got into it, and sang all the responses.  It made chills go up my spine, and I guess I will spend the rest of my life trying to re-create that moment.

The Leftoverking is your solo project of sorts, where you do all of everything (writing, instruments, recording) in creating your own tunes, a sort of studio one man band deluxe.  How did you come up with that name, what's it all about, and have you been active in that project lately?

J:  I had written a song when I was playing in the Hitch called the Leftover King.   It was about eating leftovers.  Back then I never touched a computer, and was not involved with the internet.  After I graduated from HSU, I got a hand me down computer, and I started messing around with it making art, messing with music on it, and my first email address name I picked for myself was the Leftoverking.  I was leery of the web and wanted to be a little anonymous.  So that's where that came from.  I have not been very active with writing and recording music at home these days.  The kids take up most of my energy around here.  I do on occasion record other bands still, usually at their practice spaces, but have not recorded any solo stuff for some time.

Leftoverking - Cape It's all about Splinter Cell music wise right now for you (or is it?), from what I've heard you guys have done some work on a new release, what's the story there?

J:  We did record some songs this year at my house.  We had a window of like three days while my wife and kids were out of town.  So far one song has come out of that recording, and I think you already have it (Can The Baby Reach The Meth?)  turns out our guitar player was sick the whole time and was not really feeling it while we recorded.  It's pretty evident in the recordings.  (ha ha)  So I think we are going to have to do it over again someday.  Plus we have a few new ones to add that we have been working on.

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/95155491" params="color=ff5500" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /]

Did you have anyone you looked up to, or who sort of showed you the ropes in life or art?

J:  My Dad was pretty influential.  He was a painter.  I guess that's what got me interested in art to begin with.  I remember as a family we would go to the beach with little squares of old paneling, and a bottle of Elmer's glue, and make mosaics.  Always something creative going on.  Other than that, I have had many art teachers from high school through my college career that were inspirational to me.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqvSesXD7LY]

When did you become serious about doing art, what medium was it and how did that lead up to where you are today?

J:  I was really into art in high school.  I had a great teacher who encouraged me.  I went on to junior college, and eventually SF state studying art the whole time, but I guess I had doubts  the whole time about the legitimacy of being able to make art for a living.  Those doubts are still with me today, as I make my living as a housepainter, and not a painter of pictures.  I am honored that you think I am an artist Justin, but i afraid the rest of the world does not share your sentiment.  (haha)  I did lots of cartooning when I went to Foothill College, and that was fun, but I also got into lots of trouble doing it.  Humor can be dangerous.  When I left there for SF State, I was into painting and got exposed to printmaking.  When I came to HSU I pretty  much stuck to printmaking, and in particular got really into stone lithography.  Pretty much no one does stone litho anymore.  Not even at HSU.  It's gone, a lost art.  Maybe in New Mexico there a few still doing it.  I used a lot of solvent.  Not very eco friendly.  Those days are gone.  I always seem to be pushed into a new medium for one reason or another, and these days it's photography.  In my whole college career I never touched a camera once.  I felt like it was a cheater's way to create an image.  Now I see it differently.  So I have been having lots of fun playing with that.

As your art has grown, your taste in it must be ever changing too (or not).  Are there any artists that inspired you and that have stood the test of time, what made them so special?

I guess there are some artist's who's work I have always admired.  Maybe never to imitate, but just to look at and think, "wow, that's cool".  Van Gogh, Aguste Rodin, Cindy Sherman, Raymond Pettibon.  I don't know, there are so many that I enjoy.   Here in Eureka there are so many talented folks who's work I enjoy too.  One of my favorites is painter Jesse Wiedel.  His work has that same kind of messed up quality that Pettibone has, but in color, and even weirder, as it relates mostly to the Humboldt brand of natural freakiness that surrounds us.

There was a really killer documentary about the ever dynamic Humboldt music scene called Rural Rock and Roll, what was your part in that?

J:  I was the poster child for it.  The guy on the cover and the intro.  That was about the extent of my involvement.  It's a cool documentary though, as it showcases the variety of great bands that are hiding out in a place like this.  It was made by Jensen Ruffe, a guy who went to HSU and played in bands here who now works for MTV.  I think he edits real world and shows like that.

What new stuff spins on your turntable?  Who's hot in the Humboldt scene right now?  Who would you like to see on a dream bill at say the Alibi?

J:  Lately the newest stuff on the turntable is a 7" from a band that played here called the Gap Dream.  Believe it or not I bought a cassette from them too!  A Burger Records artist.  Pretty cool stuff.  What is hot in Humboldt right now are dj's.  They pack the houses these days, and sadly live bands can hardly draw a crowd.  I can't explain it, but that's how it is.  It's a little frustrating that a guy playing his ipod plugged into a p.a. garners more interest and better pay than an actual performing musician or band.  It makes me wonder what the point of even playing is, other than I still have a good time doing it.  Dream bill at the Alibi?  Hmm.  Sometimes I think it would be cool to have all of the ex members of the Hitch play with their respective current bands, but that probably will never happen.  They only allow two bands on a bill at the bi.

Any advice you have for the young artist/musician that might be coming up into it all these days?

I guess I'd say, if you are serious about making a living at art or music, be serious.  Otherwise, you'll never make it.  Oh, and maybe have a backup plan,  like being a janitor or something.

Any future projects in the works, where are you headed man?

Right now I am putting together a photography show of multiple exposures for the near future.  I have all my prints made, and need to hunker down and make some frames and mats next.  Uhh.

Any additional words of wisdom?

The Specials song keeps popping up on the ipod, "enjoy yourself."  seems like good advice.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXta1BEIAw4]

Thanx Bud!

Sean Hogan interview

First ran across Sean Hogan at his essential, yet (for now?) defunct Damaging Noize blog, a virtual hotspot for some of the finest and sometimes rarest of extreme music (specializing in Japcore). He had the comments turned off on the blog, but provided his email, so like a fanboy I got in touch with him. I started seeing Sean's comments at some of the other better music blogs and one such occasion he singlehandedly and unknowingly turned me on to a whole different kind of Hardcore music in the form of Bloody Fist Records. Then I just happened to pick up a 7", I forget the band's name, that had Sean' artwork on the cover...this hentai styled chick. In talking to him I found out that he played music and inquired about that, which led to a hunt and eventual purchase of his band Cthuwulf split with Death Sentence, which I loved. Anyway, long story short, Sean is an interesting, multi-talented, renaissance type guy and I wanted to ask him a few questions, so we have this... You're an old LA head aren’t you, born and raised, like me, what was it like growing up in the LA area? -- In hindsight, fairly uneventful. For all the shit I pulled (and certainly talked) I somehow skated a lot of the consequences some of my close friends and other associates received. So here I still am, arguably unscathed (and thankful for that). How would you describe yourself, feel free to be as general or specific as you like? -- For all my terminal cynicism, I somehow still default to clowning, laughing, being sarcastic and gross. I live by an extremely simple mantra of "don't trip on me and I won't trip on you". My first exposure to you was as a blogger, then as an artist, then as a musician, what came first, a love of art or a love of music and what events led up to that? -- Definitely art. I had high(ly misguided) aspirations to be the next Pushead. Ironically, all the guys who blatantly rip off his style the best these days completely deny any influence from him whatsoever…so maybe that's a good thing I (mostly) gave up in that aspect. But yeah, music…it goes without saying you grow up on horror movies and comic books and doodling stupid shit constantly, you discover thrash/death metal and it makes you want to do album covers. It was as simple as that for me. My "talent" on the other hand is always up for debate, and I don't feel I'm being self-deprecating or overly modest to say that. The day one stops questioning if they are an artist, is the day they cease to be an artist (or words to that effect). I’m sure you were a straight A student and a teacher’s pet, but did you study art all, to what degree are you self taught? What or who are some of your influences? -- I did every artsy type of class you could possibly do in high school (I was even on senior yearbook staff haha!), and the same in college (even going so far as to take a course where the entire semester focused on "ethics" in the design field). But considering how full of myself I was with my "talent" (I was sophomoric at best, yet failed to see this at the time), I consider my real classroom "in the field" so to speak. Real work experience, in the non-art facets of art, taught me that even when you are openly acknowledged as the pinnacle of your field, IT'S A FUCKING BITCH TO GET PAID! I learned so much in developing actual skill as well as the reality of surviving on art. So yeah, I really have to say I ended up being about 90% self taught, quite often (and I still do this) reverse-engineering techniques or effects I wished to achieve. Influences? Ultragore and existentialism (and anime ;) ). As far as I know, your art was by hand, on paper and whatnot and by necessity I’m sure, as computers where fairly primitive when you were young, but it wasn’t that long ago that you made a transition from that medium to almost exclusively digital art…how did that come to be? Are you using Photoshop, or are there other programs you could recommend? -- My first exposure to Photoshop was in my first semester of college in the fall of '91. So, the technology was there early on…just no one was taking advantage of it (and with most "new" technologies, a lot of oldschool artists I met were afraid of it). Hell, when I earned my digital design degree, they still made us do thumbnail roughs and lettering by hand! Regardless, though my parents were kind enough to set me up with my own Mac and arsenal of what were once industry standard programs (QuarkXpress and Freehand, Photoshop is the only popular survivor these days), if I wasn't doing some bullshit magazine layout for a grocery store, I was only using the technology for logos or gradient shading in black and white (and very BASIC layout for the covers, scanning and cleaning my own drawn art). I'm not sure what set it off, my going completely digital. Maybe I was (very slowly) becoming curious with what I could achieve with using my mouse instead of a pen and paper. I did get really sick of the mess of smeared pencil lead, eraser shavings, and ink accidents…let alone my frustration in what I saw was becoming lazier and sloppier work on my end. In the 90s, I was notorious for getting something like a 10" record's entire layout hand-drawn and shipped to Finland within 2 days. Now, I take literally months to finish a 12" sized cover. If it's a basic 7" cover, maybe several weeks. I'd rather move at a snail's pace to coax noticeable growth in my skill than to race ahead halfass just to get it over with. Program's now? Just the current version of Photoshop's creative suite (aka: the 1,100 dollar version…yes, IT'S WORTH IT). I really need to learn InDesign for standard text-heavy layouts. It's bundled with Photoshop, and I'm assuming is analogous to Quark in regards to "desktop publishing", but I've never seriously had to consider looking into it until recently (laying in LARGE amounts of text in Photoshop is difficult and mind-murderingly slow). Other programs I use are some of the Alien Skin Software and Topaz Studios plug-ins, though I still feel a compulsion to tweak them and experiment with multiple overlaid effects, or bits of edits I choose to remove. I still use a mouse exclusively after all these years. So yeah, I'd have to say Photoshop's CS package is all you really need (it also comes bundled with Illustrator for fine vector graphics, which if done correctly can blow your mind!). Shed the tears and buy it! You’ve done a lot of art for various bands, covers and so forth, can you name drop a little bit and I’ve seen some pretty wicked shit, is there one that you are most proud? -- Fear Of God, Protes Bengt, Napalm Death, Nausea L.A., Bloody Phoenix, Cluster Bomb Unit, Katastrofialue, Deep 6 Records, Bruce Banner, Death Sentence Australia, Goblin/Hideous Mangleus, The Helpless, Disleksick (real nice guys), Agathocles. Tons of shit I can't even remember until I stumble on it on Discogs (hey man, I was drunk the entire '90s). Some of these bands have been clients multiple times, and have sought me of their own volition (weird). My favorites? Even though it ended up being an unintentional parody of Dark Passages, the Goblin CD discography as well as Nausea's new LP. The cut-off for my "Phase One style" is around Nausea's LP cover, which I had finished in it's entirety two years ago. Beginning with what I've been doing recently for Excruciating Terror and Nailed Down is my "Phase Two", which I am finding more pleasure and growth with (maybe at a snail's pace, but worth it). My absolute favorite cover stylistically is the "grind-collage-to-end-all-grind-collages" that became the cover for the Agathocles/M.A.D. split LP (there's an even deeper story to this, but I'm being lazy). As an "Artiste" it would have to be coming full circle from being a 17 year old fan of Nausea, to being their borderline in-house art guy 20+ years later. I achieved my "childhood dream" in that way, and yet I know I could still go so much farther. Don’t be shy now, what is the lamest band, in retrospect, you have ever been a fan of? What made you see the light? -- No guilty pleasures my friend. I bump G'N'R and Terrorizer in my car with equal aplomb. And if anybody out there can't see the fucking BRILLIANCE of Ritual De Lo Habitual, they can just chuggle my tumescence. What was the first live act you ever saw and what was your favorite (feel free to list more than one, I know I couldn't pick just one)...and why? -- I was a late bloomer, I didn't go to my first show until I was nearly 17. I was always bigger on having money to pick up more records. My first time seeing an underground band playing live was some no-name thrash metal band at a house party. But then a month later I think it was either Kreator, Morgoth, The Accused, and Excel (yeah, crazy bill!), or the first Grindcrusher tour. Autopsy's west coast tour for Severed Survival, and Nausea's first LP release party are in there as well. This would all be in very early '91, the same year I graduated high school. '91 treated me VERY well throughout the entire year! I'm one of those fudds who never has strong opinions on shows, no matter how "godly" some of the bands I saw were. What happened that you went from being a fan of music, to being a musician? -- I heard songs in my head that I wanted to hear in real life, but that no one else was playing. Doing Cthuwulf, I wanted a band that sounded like a mixture of Gai, Mob 47, and early Ripcord, and shakiness aside, we got that. I probably shouldn't have made 90% of my musical journeys public, but it was all one big crazy experiment to begin with. I still don't feel I am proper musician and will never call myself such. Can you give up a discography of the shit you’ve released? What are some of your favorites? And if you could pick one tune that was your best/favorite composition, which would it be? -- Honestly, I would like Cthuwulf to be remembered for just two recordings: the session that became the split 7" with Death Sentence, and our 2006 "Gaishu Issyoku" demo. On those two sessions we were at our tightest, or fastest, we got the best sound we could on the absolute worst amateur equipment, we had energy, excitement, the recordings had vibe, I was happy with my guitar tones…just everything clicked. I still really enjoy listening to those sessions a great deal, we felt like a "real" band then, like we were channeling the turn-of-the-80s noisecore we mutually loved (and I don't mean the trendy kind of noise these years). There's other tracks I like in everything else we recorded, but those specific two are the most important to me. There's also a couple demos I did programming hXc-techno (Mach Baron, and Pyrotoxxxn), they still seem to entertain me, and it'd be cool if others got a smile (or nightmare) out of them as well.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0V9p8UZVolY]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngeP1MUjNhs]

Another thing we have in common is a past life of debauchery, what was that like and do you miss it? You recently celebrated 10 years of sobriety if I’m not mistaken, how’s that going for you? -- 11 years sober. My life was shit and nothing but drama when I drank. I don't miss it. I'm still shocked a decade later that I've never spent a day in jail for the shit I pulled when I drank (almost arrested several times though), and just as with the very first question you started this interview with…I'm fucking THANKFUL. Pot on the other hand… *shifts eyes side to side.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzwmRY23Mks]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52pSjFVuoBk]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBQCr7q2lF8]

What kinds of things do you have in the works…future plans? -- Starting Radiation Therapy school, I keep talking out my ass about starting up c-beat catastrophe SICK WITH FEAR with Lalo & Marco (and maybe lil' Fivel too), finish another hXc-techno/experimental album, restart the blog, doing covers for Eu's Arse and a new LP for Excruciating Terror. The future looks like a lot of fun!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6CW_LfQu6Y]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mgTcVGdoic]

Thanx Sean!

Freddy Alva interview

I've never actually met Freddy Alva (Me=NoWhere Kansas, Freddy=New York New York) but we've known each other for several years now. He is friends with Erich Keller (they've actually met in person), another internet buddy and we shared something in common, a love of music. He got in touch with me and asked if I'd like to review some records he had just put out on his newly revived and legendary, Wardance Records. It was already a well known fact that he had released some pretty epic stuff, but I'll be damned if he wasn't releasing some pretty killer stuff again. You can find several of those reviewed around here, the latest being the mind blowing Sacrilege demos LP. Branching out now too into publishing in the form of Lewis Dimmick's "This Music", and then maybe documentaries? Anyway, I've found him to be a hell of a nice guy and a very interesting character in our global scene, so I figured I'd interview him for MR (this being the second interview I have ever done). I got his picture from the Spark! Wellness page, not sure if that's where Freddy works, that's one of many questions I didn't ask him. In this virtual age, you are yet another one of those valued friends that I have never actually met, what's your story Freddy, where do you come from? Well, my story goes like this: Born in Peru, moved to NYC when I was 8 years old. Grew up in Jackson Heights, Queens. I believe we are all the sum total of how our parents & surroundings mold us growing up, so I feel lucky to have had an extremely diverse upbringing that's influenced a good chunk of the choices I've made in life. I also value our virtual friendship. I remember reading a quote somewhere that it's really hard for men to make other friends of the same gender once we hit our 30's & 40's. Glad to see that's not the case here, hope to drink a couple of cold ones in person one day! You are a man who wears many hats, how do you define yourself? I am an Acupuncturist by training, a HC/Punk music aficionado by choice, a Peruvian/American by identity & an NYC "lifer". I've lived here for 35-plus years, so I think I get to call myself that. As far as personal politics, religion & what have you; it's a moot point, I've always been non-denominational in regards to those issues. As a fellow music lover spanning many genres in several decades, I'm curious about what was your first exposure to music? My earliest musical exposure that I can recall is of the melodramatic Spanish pop music best exemplified by Julio Iglesias/Camilo Sesto & others of their ilk. My cousins used to play them to death back in Peru during the mid-1970's, so I've always had a soft spot for them. I also still dig old Peruvian waltzes that my mom used to play when I was child, to this day; I'll be transported back in time whenever I hear those sounds. Hardcore punk, metal or hip hop, can you live with just one? Don't think so! I will say that I still find some current bands in the HC/Punk/Metal spectrum interesting. Sadly, I can't say the same for the current state of hip hop. I think the last good rap records were released in the mid to late 1990's. There's too much commercial gloss in hip hop today plus the effort to fit into an "Urban Contemporary" niche has really watered down the original feel of hip hop & this is coming from someone who was a b-boy in 1982, rocking Adidas track suits/shelltop sneakers & going to all the early rap concerts. First memorable show? Or feel free to list several. Ok my first shows- In Hip-Hop: Affrikaa Bambatta & the Soul Sonic Force in 1982. In Hardcore: Raw Power in 1985 In Metal: Slayer in 1986 All three impacted me deeply for varying reasons. Whether it was my age at the time, catching them at their prime or living in a vastly different city to the way NY is now; I really can't say. Unless some totally breathtaking new genre of music appears & blows me away. I am always gonna have these 3 reference points as the gold standard. Of course I've listened to every conceivable strain of music under the sun, but I'll be a bit dogmatic & hold on to these as the prime movers. Did you have anyone you looked up to, or who sort of showed you the ropes in the scene(s)? I got into HC my sophomore year in High School. I'd discovered punk through listening to a local college new wave station. There was a small group of skinheads & metal heads at my school. I became good friends with this skin named Leo from Brooklyn & started hanging out with him & the band he played in, called Occupied Territory. Those guys worshipped the Bad Brains, Scream & Minor Threat so I'm forever grateful for being introduced to those bands. It was also through them that I met people in the scene & started going to the HC matinees at CBGB's. What are your top five bands, of all time, in any genre and why? For HC: Black Flag, Minor Threat,   Bad Brains, Discharge & the Dead Kennedys. For Metal: Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Motörhead, Slayer & Venom For Hip Hop: Afrikkaa Bambataa, Grandmaster Flash, Run DMC, Eric B & Rakim, Public Enemy One can arguably trace the lineage of any current bands or performers in those genres down to these trendsetting acts. You teased me a while back with a tune from a band you played in (dying to get a full rip of that to post), what is your history of being on the stage, the observed as opposed to an observer? Well, we never made it to the stage, just some practices & we recorded 1 song at Don Fury's studio. The story goes like this: I was compiling material from bands that would end up on the New Breed Tape Comp. I wanted to form a band to be included on it, never mind the fact that I can't & never will be able to play any instrument. Undaunted, I put a flyer looking for band members, got some cool responses & met people that could actually play. They came up with a song & I wrote the lyrics to & recorded it but the end result didn't blow me away so we shelved it. Listening to said track 25 years layer, it actually doesn't sound all that bad, certainly no worst than other stuff from that time. The guys in the band, we called ourselves Last Cause, are saying that we had a couple of other tunes that I can't for the life of me remember. When a good tape of them pops up, a link will come your way, just don't be too harsh on them! Why release records and what's the story behind calling it Wardance Records? I decided back in '89, since I can't actually play music, why don't I do the next best thing & help release it? The New Breed tape was the first production I was involved with. The explosion of bands centered around Abc No Rio in 1990 influenced me to document on vinyl some of the ones that I thought were amazing. I stopped in '94 & brought the label back to life in 2010. It now functions as a reissues/put out records by friends label. I've done these formats in my releases so far: vinyl, tape, cd, 8-track, t-shirts, poster & even a book. I hope to still do a VHS, DVD & flexi sometime in the near future. The label's name comes off a song title from one of my all time favorite lp's: Killing Joke's debut record. Is there any secret unreleased material, that never came to be? Not stuff that was supposed to come out on Wardance, but I always wanted to put out related material like the band the singer & drummer from Citizens Arrest had in '92, called Colossus, did an amazing 5-song demo or the Rorschach demo before their 1st Lp w/unreleased songs. I'll keep pestering them about some kind of future release involving that stuff. Any future projects in the works? Right not I'm trying to finish this video documentary on the New Breed Comp that me & my friend John Woods have been working on for the past 2 years. We've done about 14 interviews with band members/zine editors & record label dudes that were involved with the comp in 1988. The editing process has been slow but we finally got a good editor. The plan is to finish a 45-60 minute documentary & have a screening @John's Nitehawk cinema in Brooklyn with guest speakers/giveaways/music, make an event out of it. We also plan to put it on VHS/DVD & online for download. The other release I'm working on is a reissue of a NYHC compilation from 1985, but that's still in the early stages. How did you get involved with Qi Gong and acupuncture? I studied Wing Chun Kung Fu when I was 15 & my teacher always had these chinese herbs lying around his workout space, to be used for any training related injuries. That sparked an early interest in Traditional Chinese Medicine. As I got older, I transitioned into doing Tai Chi & learned its related art of Qi Gong, which is like Chinese Yoga. These modalities influenced me to go to Acupuncture school. I've been an Acupuncturist for the past 10 years now, currently in a great practice that treats all kinds of medical conditions. A lot of people our age regret the life choices they made, for whatever reason(s), but I'm very blessed to have found my calling early on & made it a career that I love, couldn't think of doing anything else. What new stuff spins on your turntable these days? Some current faves: - I really dig the new Villians Lp, they're a NY band that plays a nasty fusion called "Street Metal". - Tony Tears from Italy play doomy melodramatic dirges like Paul Chain/Death SS, good stuff. - Sick People from Australia just put out a cool 7" that sounds like an old band on Mystic Records crossed w/NYHC. - The new Carcass Lp sounds massive, a great return to form. - Chamanes from Peru. Put out a killer cd earlier in the year, of heavy garage rock w/ ultra gruff vocals. - Kings Destroy are a local band of old friends playing Sabbath/early Soundgarden-like tunes, new lp rules. - Zebras from Wisconsin, an awesome, hard to categorize band you turned me on to, thanks! - Las Otras from Barcelona, Spain. Really snotty punk work with an unapologetic feminist bent. Any additional words of wisdom? Well, a maxim I've always tried to live by, especially when rushing about NYC or any other busy metropolis, is this: "Better to lose a minute of your life, than your life in a minute". So I always keep that in mind during my everyday commute, life is fleeting, no sense in speeding along the hour of one's (eventual) demise. On that cheery note, thank you so much for the interview buddy, looking forward to reading your new blog postings & musical recommendations! Was searching the web for pics of Freddy (there's some really cool mug shots of another Freddy Alva) and came across another interview of him (I could learn a lot from that interviewer.  Check it out at, Some Will Never Know.  If you're in the market for some good music, do yourself a favor and check out his Wardance Records, and if you're just down to do some listening check out their Soundcloud.

And in case you were wondering about that one tune that Freddy recorded with his band Last Cause, really a badass tune, it's a shame they didn't go on to do more, you can listen to that... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5Z1mxEOtH4&w=560&h=315]

Shower of Smegma (S.O.S.) - S/T CD/LP + Ed Gregor Interview

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